The Veil of Chance and Dreams
by ayako
Summary: The Veil in the Department of Mysteries is not all that meets the eye. Those who fall through it, though few, do not die, but are reincarnated, unless one of the dead interfere...And FYI I don't own Harry Potter!
1. Prologue

There was a flash of a maniacal smirk. A brief glimpse of matted, black hair, streaked with white. The sound of crazy laughter. A scream.

Silence. Darkness. It was a fuzzy sort of feeling, floating there, without knowing anything at all. He did not know how long he laid there, a minuet, an hour, a year? Two? He did not know. It was suffocating, being half aware, but having nothing to compare this endless floating to. _Did he have a body?_ he wondered vaguely.

The nothingness was endless and instantaneous. He was and was not, forever knowing and forever forgetting. He felt that it was vitally important for him to be able to remember who he was, where he was, and where he was supposed to be, but he found that he couldn't be bothered to care, much less try.

Perhaps I have a name. What was it? The letters S, B, and P seemed likely to start it, but which one was truly his? Did it matter? He decided it didn't and went back to mindlessly floating on.

Weeks later, or perhaps seconds, he found that there was light brightening wherever it was that he was existing. Which led to the discovery that he had eyes.

He found that he was able to move these eyes of his and looked down to discover a body. He could only assume it belonged to him.

The truly curious thing was that he could not move his body. this time he actually tried to, but no matter how he yearned he was unable to even twitch a finger or a toe.

He found that he was exhausted and relaxed, feeling content. It only disturbed him a little that it was so easy to lay back and let go of all worries…

He noticed the hands when he was able to clearly make out his fingernails. The hands weren't his, he was sure he had only two, and these hands where quite different from his own.

One was obviously a woman's hand, small and smooth, though its grip was strong when it grabbed at his own. The hand brought on another glimpse of memories. A hand reaching up to slap a young man with thick, unruly, black hair, a hand rubbing a baby's back to calm it's crying, writing notes during class…..but they were gone even as they were noticed, leaving him with a sense of loss. He knew that hand, and he knew it was part of the answer to who he was.

The other hand was roughly the same size as his own, though it was thinner and had longer fingers. It too brought on a wave of memories, memories he knew would be dear to him if he could only remember…..a hand ruffling black hair, catching a large red ball he knew was called a quaffle, a miniature version of it reaching out in a polite handshake, shading mischievous hazel eyes from the glaring sun as he grinned back at him….

The light was definitely getting brighter and brighter he decided. At first it had been a faint glow, but now he could see other things besides himself. Not that they were at all pleasant. He was slightly sickened to see their were bodies floating on in this existence along with him, bodies with pallid skin, eyes closed, or wide open, but unknowing. He looked away from them to an empty space above him that was brighter than normal. For an instant he had seen bright green eyes, eyes that smiled when they connected with his own, instinctively he knew that they belonged to the woman's hand that he had seen….it seemed long ago and just yesterday. He still didn't know how long he had bee here, but he was no longer completely apathetic.

The second time the hands came for him he was ready, but when they grabbed at his wrists he was only able to twitch his fingers, and the heartbreakingly familiar hands disappeared.

He found that he could hear voices speaking to him, comforting voices speaking warm encouragements every time he tried to move just a bit more. One, a rich tenor laughed at each attempt, but he somehow was not offended, but rather reassured. The other, a sultry mezzo soprano murmured unintelligibly, but it was warm sound none-the-less.

Every second he floated there (he assumed the seconds, he still couldn't measure time) he found that it was brighter, allowing for him to see all of the other bodies surrounding him. The odd thing was that they weren't gruesome at all, just the opposite. They were somehow serene in their endless existence.

It was then that he noticed that he could turn his head around. He had been trying to see one of the bodies; it had been shockingly familiar, but just out of sight. He was startled when the want to see motivated his paralyzed body to arch, allowing him some movement. The face was of a young man, boyishly handsome, but marred with a long gash running down the side. His dark hair hung down into his face, partially hiding his open eyes, eyes that were filled with confusion and fear._ Caesar? Cedric? Carl?_ He couldn't quite recall, but the boy was soon too far away and he knew he should be working on moving. The dead were dead, like it or not. He refused to think of himself as dead yet though. After all he was conscious wasn't he?

He slowly practiced wiggling his toes and fingers until he could curl and uncurl them with ease. He worked diligently at flexing his arms and legs. After he was able to roll his shoulders backwards and forwards he was satisfied. Even as he was basking in other sense of victory the hands appeared. When they grabbed his wrists he locked his hold and clung on for dear life.

The world turned slowly black…

He opened his eyes. He was lying on a large couch in the middle of a bright room. At least he supposed the room was bright for there was no color, save the other up people in the room. The others in the…there were other people here! He thought excitedly. His movement must have made a noise because the other occupants of the room turned around and set their gazes upon him. One of them, a woman, approached his bed. As he tried to focus his vision he heard an achingly familiar voice say "it's alright now, you don't have to fight us. We'll keep you safe here." "Who are you?" he managed to rasp out. Another figure moved closer and said in a deep voice, "Aw, we're hurt you've forgotten us! How do you forget your best friends?" His vision finally cleared and he could see the figures in front of him. "Hello Sirius" Lily said pleasantly. "We're so glad you could join us today" James added grinning like a madman.


	2. Crimson Hair and Brothers

Previous:

_He opened his eyes. He was lying on a large couch in the middle of a bright room. At least he supposed the room was bright for there was no color, save the other up people in the room. The others in the…there were other people here! He thought excitedly. His movement must have made a noise because the other occupants of the room turned around and set their gazes upon him. One of them, a woman, approached his bed. As he tried to focus his vision he heard an achingly familiar voice say "it's alright now, you don't have to fight us. We'll keep you safe here." "Who are you?" he managed to rasp out. Another figure moved closer and said in a deep voice, "Aw, we're hurt you've forgotten us! How do you forget your best friends?" His vision finally cleared and he could see the figures in front of him. "Hello Sirius" Lily said pleasantly. "We're so glad you could join us today" James added grinning like a madman._

Sirius sat up in his bed. He'd had a long night last night and was still trying to process everything. After all, it's not everyday that you wake up to the smiling faces of two of your best friends who had been dead for years. They'd explained that when he'd fallen through the veil it hadn't been his time to die, so he'd been thrown into the Waters of Regret, the place where those who had died sudden deaths were placed. Because of the war Sirius had been floating in the Waters for almost a year instead of a month or two. How they'd tried to plead with the Watchers – the guardians of the Waters of Regret – but were unable to get to him. How they'd decided to look for him themselves.

They then had said that unlike all the others who were left drifting in the Waters of Regret he wasn't truly dead because he's fallen through the Veil of Chance and Dreams. His body had disappeared, and his soul had been transferred into the Waters. The Waters had odd effects on their inhabitants. They stayed in coma-like states barely feeling any need to do much except exist until the Watchers were ready to decide where to send them. The Waters absorbed your memories and thoughts so you could be judged. He shivered at the thought. He'd lived too long with his memories forcibly taken away from him to not feel anything but loathing and disgust towards the whole idea of it. His memory was still kind of foggy at times and he had trouble paying attention when tired. Which reminded him of the boy he had seen….he was sure it had been Cedric Diggory, the other contestant in the Triwizard Tournament from Hogwarts. He then realized he was off on a tangent again. He shuddered a bit at the thought.

Later they'd told him all of that; they broke the biggest news to him.

After catching him and dragging him into their house he'd completely lost consciousness. The Watchers had then come to James and Lily and told them that because he wasn't supposed to die he would have been reincarnated, but because they'd forcibly removed him from the Waters his soul would not be able to be reincarnated as of yet. The only plausible solution would be to throw him back into the realm of the living. It would be very painful, but it was his only option. His soul would be destroyed if he stayed in the realm of the dead for too long.

His train of thought was broken as the door opened with a slight creak. Lily froze when she took in his tensed pose on the bed, how even as he was laid out on the bed he was still defensive. "Hey Sirius, It's just me. You can relax." She said calmly, raising her hands in the air and shrugging her shoulders. "Sorry Lily Flower" he said, ignoring her snort at the old nickname "I have spent the last few years either in Azkaban or on the run, and before that we were in the middle of a war. I'm just a bit jumpy." Lily's face softened at the words. "I know, and I'm sorry about all you've gone through. James and I, we never thought that Peter would betray us all like that. I'm so sorry you had to suffer as well." When he looked away from her she moved closer, sitting on the edge of his bed. "Sirius, what's wrong?"

"Why don't you hate me?" he mumbled, wincing as his voice broke. "Sirius Black!" Lily reprimanded, "None of what happened was your fault, none of it! Peter decided to turn traitor, James and I decided to change secret keepers, Trelawney decided to have her job interview at the Hogs Head, Voldemort decided Harry was the child of prophesy, and my sister chose to hate magic, myself included in it! James and I were heartbroken at what happened. We were angry and vengeful, but not at you, never you."

He turned and looked into her smiling face and couldn't help but smile back.

"Sirius!" James bellowed as he arrived back at the house. Lily, Sirius, and the elder Evens and Potters looked up at him as he stomped in. They we seated on the veranda that faced out into their garden. In between the circle of chairs was a smooth light blue stone. Its arched surface was set into a raised platform that jutted out from the stone a good foot all around. Inside it the small figure of Harry was sitting at the Gryffindor table chatting with Ron and Hermione. "Ah, Harry Watching again I see" said James fondly. "Lily was just explaining to me the differences in time flow here and in the realm of the living." James grinned and ran his hand through his hair "Ah, well hello Padfoot, who let you out of bed?"

"Charming Prongs, real charming. Did my dear Lily Flower let you out of the straight jacket for the day?" James ignored him, and strolled over to the circle and looked at his son wistfully. Catching Lily's glare as he started to apologize he instead said, "He's a real good kid Prongs. I'm sure you've been watching him but you couldn't be prouder of him. He's truly you and Lily's child."

A few minuets later the after the Golden Trio left breakfast for their first class Sirius said "Hey, I know you guys watch him, but would you like me to tell you about him, ya know, first hand information and all that?" at their eager expressions he went on to tell them all he knew of the boy named Harry Potter.

It was much later that James sat up from where he was lounging with his head in Lily's lap and said "Oh wow! I completely forgot! Padfoot, you know how the Watchers told us that you had to go back? Well there is only one date when you can go, according to them. For some reason if you go any other time it would mess up the realm of the living. The Transition Time, yes it IS called the Transition Time is when the moon is full in both realms. That is going to happen in about three weeks. The only thing is, we're not quite sure about where in time you will be dropped into, so…" he trailed off uncertainly.

"James, I can stand a little pain!" Sirius cried a smirk adorning his face. James smiled half heartedly. Everyone in the room knew that the transition back to the realm of the living would be extremely painful. "Besides, what choice do I have?" Sirius said "If I stay my soul will be torn to bits! That won't be much fun. Hey, and anyway, I'd get to hang out with Prongslet and Moony some more!" They all smiled at the thought.

It was the night of the full moon and Sirius, Lily and James were gathered around a small crackling fire they'd made behind the house. It wasn't cold out; the fire was needed for the ceremony. Lily was hunched over it chanting spelling softly on the fire. Her crimson hair was pulled into a loose braid standing in sharp contrast against her silvery white robes that declared her to be a sorceress of the fourth class, a very prestigious group. She had stepped up to perform the rite, as the ceremony would need a generous amount of magic, a plethora of knowledge concerning charms, and the ability to do them silently. Sirius stood back a bit chatting softly with James. Lily soon rose and glided over to the two men, a half smile on her lips.

"Sirius, please tell my Harry that I love him –" "And that he should try and not give Minnie too many gray hairs" James interjected with a smirk. "James!" Lily cried as she slapped him lightly on his arm. "If I didn't already know you wouldn't be able to carry anything back with you I would give you a letter to him, but I can't! Oh, this isn't fair!" James rubbed Lily's back and whispered into her ear until she cooled down. They then started telling him all that they wanted him to tell Harry if he was thrown into the right time period. That was how they stayed as they waited for the moon rise.

As the moon crested the sky they all rose, as if by a silent command. James hugged his brother in all but blood and choked out "thank you for watching over my son. Please be there for him, no matter what. And take care of yourself, alright Padfoot?" Lily was wise enough not to mention the tears in the eyes of her husband and one of the few people she was able to call family. When Sirius turned to her she smile up at him then hugged him hard. She then leaned up and kissed him on the cheek. She looked into his eyes one more time and smiled back at him. There were no more words to be said.

They walked up to the bonfire, each standing opposite of the other, staring into the flames. Lily raised her wand so it was inches above the curling flames and started the incantation. Her eyes glazed over and began to almost glow with the power that was radiating from her petite body. The flames suddenly roared up, engulfing her entire lower arm, but not burning her or her wand. The flames rapidly went through a metamorphosis of colors, green, blue, violet, yellow, silver, crimson, gold, then finally to a deep blue that was almost purple.

Lily lifted her wand out of the flames and stepped around the inferno to stand next to Sirius. She gently pulled him head down so she could trace the runes for power, transition, harmony, and the moon onto his forehead, cheeks and at the base of his throat, respectively.

She then stepped back to her original place across the fire from him. They had gone over the ritual again and again since they had found the date of the coinciding full moons, and Sirius knew that it was truly time for him to leave. He took one last fleeting glance at his best (dead) friends for what would hopefully be a long time and stepped into the flames. He could feel the magic all around him, travelling through his body, lighting fireworks behind his eyelids, consuming his body. The pain was astounding. He had expected it, but it was one thing to know of it and another to truly feel it. He wanted to scream, but couldn't figure out how to do it in this place filled with raw magic.

He felt the magic pull out his own and the world went black for the second time that month.

"Do you think he'll be okay?" Lily asked James as she leaned against him after coming out of her magic-induced daze. "Lily, it's Sirius, he was the first person to ever escape Azkaban! He's the boy who in second year ate all the pudding at the Gryffindor AND Hufflepuff tables then ran outside to play Quidditch for three hours and woke up fine the next day! He'll be fine!" Lily rolled her eyes, but then said, "Well just to be sure, can we watch for him? I'd also like to check up on Harry." With that they turned and ambled back up the path, hoping that they had done right by sending their dear friend into an unknown time.


	3. A Curious Case of the Gribnals

Disclaimer: I really don't own HP (because Remus and Snape would still be alive) anything else you recognize is caused by this thing called coincidence…..

A/N: Thank you for reading! Sorry I haven't posted in about a year, I'm just applying for college as a Voice Performance major…..

It had taken six years for the Wizarding World to round up the remaining Death Eaters and Death Eater sympathizers after the so called 'Final Battle'. During that time, life had to go on. Funerals for those who died in the battle were attended; weddings were held (the most notable between Ron and Hermione two years into the reconstruction).

Five years later saw Harry living happily married to Ginny, with two kids, and a third on the way.

Little James sat next to his mother, slowly reading a chapter book out loud, every so often asking what a word meant as they lounged on a blanket set out in the back yard of their home, the Haven, in Ottery St. Catchpole, just down the lane from the Burrow. The air was warm and soothed their skin as it was the first really warm day of the year, so they treasured the warmth. Every so often Ginny would glance up, her eyes tinged with worry as she watched Harry teach James's younger brother Albus how to ride a broom. Al had been wanting to learn how to ride a broom since he had been three and had watched his father teach his brother how to ride, but was forced to wait two more years until he, was five, just as James had.

It was utterly ironic how their two sons had turned out thus far, considering their namesakes. James was reserved and bookish, (though that did not mean his didn't get into his own share of trouble, he just usually refrained from getting involved with his younger brother's crazy schemes) preferring the quiet of an afternoon cuddled up with a book to the loud squeals his brother strove for with his pranks.

Al in contrast was mischievous from as soon as he was able to crawl. He often was found where he wasn't supposed to be and had all too much fun devising new pranks. His favorite uncle and idol was his Uncle George.

The pleasant afternoon was broken when the hand mirror lying in the grass by Harry started to glow and hiss. Harry picked it up and looked at the young face of the trainee Healer there. "Healer Potter, you're needed at St. Mungo's!" Harry gently brought Al down from his broom and then looked back at the other man "What's the problem Richard?" the young man rolled his lip in between his teeth nervously, "A man was brought in today. We weren't able to identify him before he woke, and now he won't say a thing except he needs to talk to you. I'm very sorry, but we wouldn't bother you except he was found in a ritual circle."

At this, Harry's eyes narrowed. "Alright, I'll be there soon. I'm sorry Al, I'll be back soon, I promise, alright? You know I wouldn't leave on your birthday if this wasn't important." The young boy pouted, but nodded and smiled up at his father.

Harry ran into the house up into the master bedroom, grabbing his Healer's robes and wand as he did so. He made his way into the side room, where the secure floo was which was connected to St. Mungo's high security ward where Harry worked. Most of the patients there were high profile patients, had experienced an attempt on their life or were found to be questionable enough to have been moved there by one of the Healers. The entire ward was password protected which were combined with charms that recognized a person's magical signature and voice.

After flooing in to the ward Harry walked up to the nurse's desk. "Gd'afternoon Gretchen" he said to the young woman on duty. She looked up and glared at him before curtly saying "That's Nurse Howards to you _Healer Potter!"_ he only smiled at her "Your new patient is in the Amber Room" she growled at him. Harry laughed, saying "thanks luv!" as he made his way to see the new patient.

He remembered his first real day as a Healer at the Hospital. The war was scarcely over and Death Eaters still roamed free. He and his fellow classmates at the St. Mungo's Academy had been half going to school half already working for the hospital, brewing potions, running the ER or watching the more tame wards so the Nurses and Healers could take care of the overflow of patients.

He and Luna had been minding the emergency ward with Frieda Collins and Darius Wise when a woman was brought in by her hysterical husband. There had been an attack on their neighborhood and she had stepped in front of an unknown curse aimed at their neighbor's little girl.

Collins had had a panic attack then and there and Wise had gone white and ran off to find a Nurse or a Healer to help.

Harry and Luna however, had encountered much the same thing on the battlefield. Without even speaking Luna and Harry knew what each was going to do. Luna worked on keeping the husband from a panic attack and Harry took care of the wife. The wounds were deep, cutting from her left shoulder down her back, ending at the middle of the small of her back. The edges of the wounds were a deep violet and a black smog rose from them. "Luna, I think we have an altered version of Sectumsepra here. What do you think?" he asked as she glided over. "Hmm, yes or perhaps…a hybrid of hydra blood and werewolf bile coating the wounds? That would certainly cause the discoloration, though not the wounds in the first place." As they talked they worked, coating thick bandages in healing salve that would stem the flow of blood and wrapping the woman's torso with them. They knew better than to treat the woman without one of the Healers present. Bad things happened to internees who went against that rule.

The woman had recovered after Wise had returned with a Healer, who praised Luna and Harry for their fast thinking with the patient. It turned out that she was hit with a Sectumsempra and the hybrid poison. The combination of the two had caused her body to repel magic and actually deteriorate. Their calm thinking saved her life.

It was their actions that day that got them moved assigned to the high security ward.

He glanced down at the chart he held in his hands. His patient was a male, somewhere between the ages of 35 and 62; you could never be sure with wizards. He apparently was Caucasian, roughly 5'11" ft, dark haired, and severely malnourished. He had refused to tell who he was and the spells that were supposed to identify unconscious or overly stubborn patients were failing. No known medical history as he was a John Doe.

As he walked down the hall he ran into Luna who was busy buttoning up her tye-dyed Healer's robes as she walked. "New patient Luna luv" he sang at her, passing her the patient info as they walked towards the Amber Room. "Hmm, it seems that this patient of ours has been in close contact with gribnals for most of their life. They make people very stubborn. They often live in old buildings. He's most likely a pureblood, or lived in one of their homes."

Luna truly was a font of information and saw past what was plain to most people. You just had to get past her talk of crazy creatures and plants.

"Hey Luna, it says here that our patient demanded to receive treatment from me and only me. He even swore an unbreakable vow that he was not trying to hurt me…."

"Another trait often found in those suffering from prolonged exposure to gribnals I believe"

As they entered to room Harry checked his wand holster just in case. He had learned to after being placed under a nasty curse by a dark supporter during his days in the emergency ward.

The curtains were drawn around the bed, but they could see the back of a dark head from between them.

"Good afternoon Mr. Doe" Harry said as he and Luna entered the room. "I am Healer Potter and this is Healer Lovegood. Although I suppose you know who we are as you requested treatment from us, well at least from me…"

He trailed off as the man raised his head. The man's long, dark hair, which had previously been casting shadows across his face fluttered back, giving the two young Healers an unhindered view of the man on the bed.

"Sirius?" Harry gasped

"Ooooh, Mr. Boardman, I'm so happy to see you've returned!" Luna smiled.b


End file.
